S&SWM PR papers L375

I was speaking about the results of your excavations at Rushmore to my friend Mr Soden Smith, the Keeper of the Art Library at S. Kensington and he told me that he had not seen your book.

It is possible that you may already have given a copy to that Library - but if not it would be much appreciated.

I feel some warrant in making this suggestion from your having asked Mr Franks to tell you of any one whom he considered worthy to possess your book.

The more I look at the New Ireland paddleclubs [insert] from Fenton [end insert] the more I am convinced that they are more or less modern - that is to say the ornament has been added to what may have been an old implement.

Yours faithfullyCharles H. Read

See Add.9455vol2_p323 /1-2 and Add.9455vol2_p339 /1-7, all New Ireland paddles / clubs acquired by Pitt-Rivers from Fenton in 1887 [the first time in June 1887 and the others in August or September 1887). These presumably are the paddles referred to, see here for more information about these paddles.

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L871

23 May 1892 | 17 Carlyle Square, S.W.

Dear General Pitt Rivers

I enclose Gowland's receipt for the bath to prevent iron implements from disintergration - It has been most successful with his Japanese iron.

1 oz of Sodium carbonate to 1 1/2 pint of water Soak for three days - then wash in running water for a week to a fortnight It is essential that all the sodium should be washed out from the iron.

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L1034

British Museum London W.C. | 2 Aug. 1894

Dear General Pitt Rivers

I enclose a short account of the four Devarajas, some of which maybe of use to you. I forget what attributes your four hold, but you may be able to identify them. The variations of these Buddhist representations in different countries & periods are apparently endless and certainly exasperating

Yours trulyCharles H Read

Sadly the account is missing. This refers to Add.9455vol3_p1010 /2 and on, given by Read to Pitt-Rivers a month before in July 1894

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L1108

Ansd Nov.21/94

17 Nov 1894 | 17 Carlyle Square, S.W.

Dear General Pitt Rivers

I have been down to see Mr Rutland (the man who dug up the Saxon barrow at Taplow) who wants to realize some of the collection - He has quantities of things, mammoth remains, drift implements, as well as odds and ends of Roman things. What I thought might be of some interest to you is a small series of locks and keys mostly found in the Thames or near Taplow. If you care for them at all, I should think the simple plan would be for him to send them to you. He realizes that such things are not very valuable & would take a moderate price for them. He has also a lot of curious horse shoes some said to be Roman but I dont know whether you draw a line at those

Yours trulyCharles H Read

Despite Read's recommendation, these locks and keys do not seem to form part of the second collection, or at least they are not catalogued in the CUL catalogue.

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L1789

Read | Ansd Apr. 22

13 April 1897 | British Museum | London: W.C.

Dear General Pitt Rivers

I am glad you keep on as Local Secretary* - It is fitting you should from our point of view.

I will certainly take the earliest opportunity of seeing your "Local Museum". It is absurd that I have never seen it as a visit would be both b...[illegible] & pleasure. My view of Local Museums generally is that their value depends less on the Museum than the man at the head of it. My old chiefs ** view was to a certain extent justified by his experience & even my own - the local museum sold local things to neighbouring people: but when I offered to clear them out of a lot of ethnographical curios which they thought nothing of, they immediately had a general meeting & passed a Resolution that nothing was ever to be sold or parted with - their local antiquities all the time were going to rack & ruin for want of cases, wh'ch my money would have provided. This is a fair example of our experience

I am sorry to tell you that Sir Wollaston is very ill *** - He has been more or less an invalid all this year & now is practically confined to the house. My [illegible] will depend to a great extent on his condition, which I hope may improve.

I am sorry to hear you complain of infirmities still

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

I wish something could be found for Payne - he has applied for Plymouth Museum to be forwarded I dont know if you have any influence there

*Pitt-Rivers had been asked to be Local Secretary for the Royal Archaeological Institute for Dorset

** Presumably Franks.

*** Franks died of cancer of the bowel on 21 May 1897, he had retired in 1896 and his post as head of Ethnography was taken by Read.

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L1799

Read

23 April 1897 | British Museum | London W.C.

Dear General

I shall certainly make an effort to come and see you and your new gallery when it is done.

Of course I know generally what you have done in your museum and I think the idea an admirable one, though it is a pity you are so far from everywhere.

I shall read your account of the bronze camps with great interest. I always think Sir John Evans missed a great opportunity in writing his bronze book - It ought to have been a treatise on the subject, instead of a kind of catalogue raisonné of types.

I am struggling with a handbook of our prehistoric collections - a thing that as never existed up to now. It will I hope be the fore runner of a series of text books of British archaeology - up to the Conquest.

Sir Wollaston does not improve, I grieve to say. He will not be at the Anniversary today - a great disappointment to him

I hope you will manage to prevent the erection of butts over the Group of five barrows on the Plain in the part bought by the W. Office. They ought to be properly explored first.

I trust you are better,

Yours very truly

Charles H Read

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L1932

9 Septr 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

Dear General

The photographer who has made an ethnological set of Irish photographs is

R. WelchPhotographerBelfast

I have just come across the address so I sent it at once

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

This is Robert Welch (1859-1936), he specialised in outdoors photography, some of his photographs are shown in the Ulster Museum. Examples of the kinds of photographs that Pitt-Rivers might have been interested in acquiring are shown here. It is not known if Pitt-Rivers did acquire any of his photographs.

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L1933

Ansd Sept 11/97

10 Septr 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I am sending you a small box to Tisbury station containing some of the implements from Stourpaine for your Museum. There are six of a special type from that locality [Drawing] a kind of bipenins [?] & pair [insert] 3 [end insert] of the picks I spoke of - As local types they will I hope be acceptable

Yours truly

Charles H. Read

Genl Pitt Rivers D.C.L.

The bipennis is described in Durdens Catalogue (they are of course all from his collection) p. 7 No 63 64

These must be items from John and Henry Durden, they owned a Blandford grocery business and sold thousands of Dorset archaeological finds to the British Museum. See I Longworth and C Haith, 'Henry Durden and his Collection', Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 114, 1992, pp.151-160. Stourpaine is near Blandford Forum. These items do not appear to be listed in the catalogue of the second collection.

L1935

Ansd Sept 14/97

13 Septr 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

When you get Andersons catalogue (of which I told you) you will find the two little figures that I named Kanzan & Jitoku on pl. 20 (p. 198). & an account of them opposite (No 606). The "Jeypoor" figures are I am sure Japanese, & probably made at Kiôto. They almost certainly represent Arhats (i.e. Buddhist saints or ascetics) of whom there are usually sixteen These also are figured in Anderson's Catalogue pl. 5 - p 46 where a detailed account of them is given . I shall always be glad to help you in these matters when I can & would try to come down any time you thought I could be of use - now that I have found the way.

I have been thinking about the future of your museum generally & will send you a note about [insert] it [end insert] later, going into some detail. It is very difficult to know what is best in such a case

Yours very truly

Charles H Read

I am sorry not to have seen the Larmer lit up

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Japanese One of the Arhats [PR's handwritting?]

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The two figures appear to be 2 of Add.9455vol4_p1503 /1-5, the others have not been identified but must have formed part of the second collection.

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L1936

15 Septr 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

There can be no doubt as to the similarity of your Farnham & Larmer specimens to those form Stourpaine - the type is usually flat on one face [Drawing] the other being convex & worked. There are some exceptions that are worked on the faces.

It would I thought be worth [insert] your [end insert] while searching about Stourpaine for cores & hammerstones; I feel sure, from the quantity of rude stones there, that it is a factory.

I can send you a number of typical stones from the French Caves if you want them I dont remember seeing any in yr illustrative series - This would be when I come back in about a month

Yours very truly

Charles H Read

If Read did give Pitt-Rivers some stones from the french caves they are not listed in the catalogue of the second collection

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L2004

22 Nov 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I am sorry to have left your letter unanswered so long: but I could not find anyone useful to go down and look at your walls - Price is in Egypt or on the road Hope is, or ought to be, busy with the routine work at the beginning of the Session - & I am held tight here & cannot get away [illegible] fear unless on strictly Museum business - & I know no way to help you.

Your son (Lionel?) came to see me some time ago about digging in Cyprus with Christian. I did not then know, but I now do, that all private digging in Cyprus is forbidden - Even we (as I told him) give half of our finds to the Cyprus Museum and only bring home the other half - Before entering into any engagements therefore it would be well to find out how far you can go.

You spoke about some prehistoric things from Egypt. I dont know whether these in Tregaskis' catalogue are of the same kind, but I enclose the part of the Catalogue in case they may interest you. If it will help you I will go and see them & send you an account of what there is & then you can write direct to Tregaskis if you want any

I have just bought some Benin heads & other things of bronze - & among them are two I can spare - one being a duplicate. I am paying for these latter myself as I had to take the lot. I am paying £20 each for them - which of course I think they are worth.

Do you care for them? [on a separate sheet, shown here, are the two drawings] If so I will send them.

The enclosed rough sketches give you a very fair idea of their appearance - the smaller one is the better as a work of art - but the other is distinctly curious

Yours very trulyCharles H. Read

Note that the date written by Read is confused it appears to read 13 with the 3 overlaid by a 1 ie 11, indeed it might even be a 1 in which case it would be even earlier - however Thompson catalogued this after L2021 below, the content to me suggests it is earlier, but I might be wrong, I have placed it earlier on this assumption.

The first head is Add.9455vol5_p1591 /1, the second head in the drawing is Add.9455vol5_p1590 /1, Pitt-Rivers therefore acquired both, for a bargain price.

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L2021

Ansd Dec 16/97

14 Dec 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I send you a few copies of the Benin paper. As you can imagine there is rather a run upon them, as at present it is the only thing upon the subject - though it is really only a sketch. I am going to bring out a large album of the things we have here.

I safely received the photographs of Iwerne and am astonished at your luck in finding such a spot. I wish I could have come down to see it.

I took it for granted that the photographs should wait but you sent the description of the place before being shown at the Antiquaries I will bring them forward at the first January meeting if you like.

I have now two copies of your big volumes on your excavations - Sir Wollaston & my own, & as I cannot keep both I prefer to keep his copy, it being bound. I now want to ask you if you would like to have the duplicate one back again to give to some one. It scarcely seems decent to sell such things and it is very possible that you may have none to give away now. I must get rid of a good many books - as I have at least twice as many as my house will hold.

I dont know yet what will be the fate of the redundant Benin things belonging to the Government. The Foreign 'Office' is a very commercial place, I find.

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

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L2025

21 Dec 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I am today sending you the two heads & from my house the 3 vols of your Excavations will also go - so that tomorrow or the next day there will be two packages at the Station for you. As you say - the heads are not cheap - but my idea is that as the supply is limited now & that a few pounds more or less in price should not deter one if the pieces are really worth having. The two were got by Ling Roth's brother, a doctor out there, & I got them from Roth.

I hope you will like them

Yours truly

Charles H. Read

Henry Ling Roth later wrote a book about the Benin collections, his brother who collected these heads was Felix Norman Emerich Roth (1857-1921). Pitt-Rivers did not give this information in the catalogue, and therefore it has been lost until this letter was transcribed.

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L2028

24 Dec 1897 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

Griffith knows nothing definitely about the glass at Tregaskis'. He says "I do not know about these glass vases at all: all I know is that Newberry got a great collection of XVIII dynasty fragments that were being turned up by the looters on the pits of Amenhotet III's palace. Very likely he got plenty of first rate things being in the thick of the finders and on good terms with all"

I don't know that there is much else to be done - I can if you like go and look at the glasses after the holidays.

I hope the fog did you no harm

Yours very truly

Charles H Read

Enclosure

Printed telegram form from Tregaskis with stuck on labels in blue and handwritten added text.

[1st printed label] Glass Mug and Bowl, deep amber colour, found in the ancient necropolis of Eshmunen ... Both perfect £45 [Text] Found at Ishmunên

Francis Llewellyn Griffith (1862-1934) then working in the Dept of British and medieval antiquities at the British Museum with Read but also an Egyptologist.

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L2037

10 Jan 1898 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I am very sorry to hear of your having got knocked up on your visit to town - there is no hurry about the Benin things.

I have seen the two beautiful glasses at Tregaskis and should like to have a little talk with you about them - I will call in the hope of being able to see you tomorrow about 4.30 pm. If you are not visible do not trouble to write as I shall be in your neighbourhood any how

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

Pitt-Rivers does not appear to have bought the Egyptian glasses, or at least they are not listed in the catalogue of the second collection, it is not clear where Pitt-Rivers was staying in London as his own London house at 4 Grosvenor Gardens was rented, perhaps he had more than one or was staying with one of his children.

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L2042

21 Jan 1898 | British Museum | London : W.C.

My dear General

I will try and call to see you this afternoon: but in case I have not time I enclose photographs of 7 bronze tablets from Benin (Nos 27, 128, 63, 4, 90, 58, 67) which I have selected for you, as I now believe that the Foreign Office will let me dispose of them - the price of this lot is £42.

You can have more if you like, if you let me know soon.

Please let me have the photographs back as they complete my series. I enclose an envelope for the purpose

I hope you are progressing

Yrs very trulyCharles H Read

These are probably Add.9455vol5_p1603 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1622 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1631 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1632 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1633 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1639 /1, Add.9455vol5_p1640 /1, each 'plaque' is costed separately in the catalogue of the second collection and the total only comes to £41.

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L2239

28 Oct 1898 | British Museum | London W.C.

My dear General

I am very sorry to hear of your being laid up again. It is not promising just at the beginning of the winter

My man went away without sending the figure (Benin) that you bought from Forbes - but it went off yesterday to Tisbury station.

AS to the two plaques from the Foreign Office. I informed them on the 27 July that you had agreed to take Nos 310 & 311 at £7 & £9 I presume they expected you to send them a cheque. However I will write today to say that you are ready to receive them & pay for them. & you will hear definitely soon

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

I hope I shall in time receive your fourth vol: which I hear is out - you will remember that I kept Sir Wollaston's copy - returning you mine

It is not clear which figure is being referred to here, most Benin pieces have clear provenance and none are given as a 'Forbes'. It might be Add.9455vol6_p1806 /1 which does not hae a clear provenance given in the catalogue of the second collection

L2241

Cheque sent Nov 2/98 £16

Downing Street, London | 31st October 1898

Niger Coast Protectorate

Sir,

We are informed by Mr C.H. Read of the British Museum that you are desirous of purchasing two more plaques - Nos 310 and 311 - from Benin City, the prices of which are £7 and £9 each respectively. If therefore you will send us a cheque for £16 we will hand the plaques over to Mr Harding of St James's Square to pack and despatch as he did on a former occasion, and we suggest that you should instruct him accordingly.

I am,Sir,Your Obedient Servant,

E [illegible]

General Pitt Rivers, D.C.L. | Rushmore | Salisbury

These plaques might be Add.9455vol5_p1639 /1 and Add.9455vol5_p1640 /1 except the cost is different, £7 and £5 according to catalogue

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L2244

The Free Public Museums. Liverpool | Nov 1st 1898

General Pitt Rivers | Rushmore Salisbury

Dear Sir,

Your letter of the 27th Oct to Dr Forbes (who is now on his way to Socotra) has been opened by Mrs Forbes & handed to me. I understood Dr Forbes to say that he was enclosing you [sic] telegram to Mr Read at the British Museum with a request to forward the Benin figure to you & thought you had received it. I am writing to Mr Read tonight to ask him to kindly forward it on to you as requested if such has not already been done

I am, Dear Sir,Yours trulyP. EntwistileAsst. Curator

It is not clear which figure this is, as none are ascribed to Forbes in the catalogue of the second collection

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L2270

6 Dec 1898 | British Museum | London W.C.

My dear General

I can settle your tiles. They are from Pegu not India & represent Jatakar. The whole story is too long to give you in a letter but you can find a great deal more than I know & pictures besides, in the Indian Antiquary XXII p. 727 in a paper by Col. Temple, Sir Richard's son.

We have highly finished and throughly artistic glazed tiles from Persia dated AD 1261 - I scarcely think these Pegu tiles are earlier than that though they may be.

Your last letter had a melancholy strain that rather distressed me. I am glad to hear you talk of a new room & its arrangement. I will try and come down some time early in the year if I may.

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

This is Add.9455vol9_p2355 /12-13

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L2424

26 Sept 1899 | British Museum | London W.C.

My dear General

I have heard divers accounts of you lately - I hope the best of them are true. I had intended to propose paying you a visit before the British Assocn meeting at Dover but I could not manage it. You may have seen some account of my address to Section II but I now send you a separate copy in case it may interest you. I have ventured to quote your work as you will see.

You have been getting some good things lately I heard. The Benin plaque with the tearing up of an ax is a curious one I know of one other of the same subject which I hope to get one of these days.

Yours very trulyCharles H Read

It is not clear which plaque is Read is describing.

Transcribed by AP May-July 2011 as part of the Rethinking Pitt-Rivers project.